


Lily

by Zahira



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Ascian, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-28
Updated: 2017-03-28
Packaged: 2018-10-12 07:09:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10485204
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zahira/pseuds/Zahira
Summary: Elidibus has a gift for the Warrior of Light.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Pre-existing relationship. Plain, simple fluff.

"I have something for you." Elidibus breaks the comfortable silence of your secluded rendezvous with the unusual statement as he holds out one hand, palm up. A small rift twists in the air above it, then it fades and gives way to his gift.

He holds a flower there, suspended in the air where the rift was, but it is unlike any flower you have ever seen. Long, elegant, and velvet-black, its petals cradle a faintly luminescent violet core. Its alien beauty nigh takes your breath away.

"On its native star, it was known as a moon lily. It bloomed at night, and its light attracted nocturnal creatures." The briefest hesitation betrays his consideration of whether to add his next words: "...Like you."

You cannot help but smile at his comparison. He propels the flower through the air toward you, and you wrap your fingers around its stem gently, lifting it to your nose. A faint green scent like... tea leaves or mint underlies a vaguely fruity floral smell, somewhere between jasmine and carnations and... orange?

So entranced are you by your attempt to take in the new scent that Elidibus does not resist his own soft, lopsided smile. His draws out your own, as usual, and you roll the soft petals against your lips in thought. "This is from another world?"

"The twelfth. Its imbalance created life which had an affinity for darkness and aether." Also like you, you muse.

Mentally replaying his words, something else catches your attention. _Had._ "The twelfth was rejoined?" Your heart aches at the thought, as it ever does; Elidibus nods in confirmation. A world full of people... lovers meeting under the moon in a field of these very flowers, or different flora altogether, entirely unknown and as unimaginable as this strange blossom would have been but a bell ago.

"You need not be distressed. Their life force continues to flow on this world." Elidibus pauses to take in your reaction; no matter how many times the Ascians' motives are explained, no matter the function of the Lifestream, such loss of life remains a wedge between you. He knows this and continually seeks to sway you. "This is the correct way of things--all as one, not divided. As it should always have been."

You shake your head--this is not a debate for such a sweet moment--and change the subject. "How do I care for it? Water? Soil?"

"It draws aether from those around it to sustain itself, like your clockwork figures." You briefly imagine that you can feel its siphoning effect, but the feeling does not hold, retreating back into your imagination. "It will endure as long as it can find a source. Perhaps a nearby crystal." You idly wonder how often these beautiful things killed small creatures on its world by sapping their aether.

Such a lovely gift; not merely a simple lily, but a reminder of what he has to offer. With it, he reminds you of how much you could see, tempting you to learn everything that is and ever was. And it is unique, unlike anything else on this world. Like him and, if he is to be believed, like yourself. "Thank you." Uncertain of what to do with the alien blossom, not wanting to drop it or crush it in a pocket, you hold it awkwardly in front of you.

"Allow me." Elidibus plucks the flower from your hands and steps closer, possessively combing through your hair with a claw or two as he finds just the right location and angle to secure it. With him so close, you can savor his warmth and must resist the urge to lay a cheek on the soft robes mere ilms away, lest you make his fiddling more difficult.

He steps back, satisfied with the bloom's placement in your hair, silently observing you in the moonlight. His gaze warms your heart despite being hidden behind the mask, and you find yourself wishing you could stay here. For all your time spent adventuring and seeking out new situations and sensations, only Elidibus makes you feel this way.

He will always protect you.

He will always care for you.

You belong with Him.


End file.
